(ABP) — Gay marriage and abortion are overshadowing other moral issues in the presidential election, even among Christian voters, who make up the overwhelming majority of the electorate. “It has to do with the nature of our political structure,” said…
House passes ‘court-stripping’ bill to pre-empt gay-marriage lawsuits
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Barely a week after their Senate counterparts voted down a proposal to ban same-sex marriages, House members passed legislation using different methods to achieve a similar goal. On July 22, the House voted 233-194 to pass the…
Watchdog group files complaint against Arkansas church for ‘political’ sermon
SPRINGDALE, Ark. (ABP) — Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a religious-liberty watchdog organization, filed a complaint July 20 with the IRS against the 14,000-member First Baptist Church of Springdale, Ark., the largest church affiliated with the Arkansas…
Money-strapped American Baptists warn missionaries of possible recall
VALLEY FORGE, Pa. (ABP) — The American Baptists Churches USA may lose up to a fifth of its missionary force unless its mission agency can raise enough money to overcome its current financial crisis. The head of International Ministries, the…
House panel approves bill limiting courts on marriage
WASHINGTON (ABP) — The same day a gay-marriage ban failed to move forward in the Senate, a different approach to opposing same-sex nuptials passed a House committee. The House Judiciary Committee voted July 14 to send the Marriage Protection Act…
Constitutional amendment inappropriate for issue of gay marriage, some experts say
WASHINGTON (ABP) — As supporters vow to continue the fight for a constitutional amendment banning homosexual marriage, many leading constitutional scholars say an amendment is too drastic a measure. Louis Michael Seidman, professor at Harvard Law School, said the proposed…
Religious, other leaders urge court to bar death penalty for minors
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A broad coalition of concerned parties — including Nobel laureates, scientific leaders, foreign countries and American religious denominations — is urging the Supreme Court to ban the death penalty for offenders who were under 18 at the…
Truett Seminary prof dies after battle with cancer
HOUSTON (ABP) — Chip Conyers, one of Truett Theological Seminary's first faculty members, died July 18 at the age of 60 in Houston following a long struggle with cancer. Conyers — whose full named was Abdah Johnson Conyers — “possessed…
Supporters of gay-marriage ban fall short in Senate vote
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Senate supporters of a constitutional ban on gay marriage failed to muster a simple majority in support of the amendment July 14 — meaning the proposal is likely dead in the Senate until next year. A motion…